With all the hype surrounding the Hawks’ record-setting streak of 19 consecutive wins, even the casual basketball fan has taken notice. Although the Atlanta team doesn’t have a reputation for dominance in this sport of giants, a relatively little guy brought the spotlight here 19 years ago.
On Feb. 8, 1986, at 5-foot-7, Spud Webb won the NBA Slam Dunk Contest in Dallas against guys a foot or more taller than him. Most notably, he beat teammate and reigning dunk champ Dominique Wilkins.
» PHOTOS: See Spud Webb in action
Born Anthony Jerome Webb on July 13, 1963 in Dallas, Texas, he continually had to prove his prowess on the basketball court because of his small stature. As a high school player, he averaged 26 points per game and was one of 10 students out of 5,000 selected to the All-State team; however, his size prevented him from being recruited for Division 1-A colleges. Instead, he attended Midland Junior College in Texas, where he led his team to victory in the 1982 junior college championship. He then caught the attention of the coaches at North Carolina State University, where he went on to play for two years.
Despite a strong college career, his size initially kept him from making the NBA and after graduation he played in the U.S. Basketball League. In 1985, he had a successful tryout with the Atlanta Hawks and joined the team. Webb played six seasons with the Hawks, followed by stints with the Sacramento Kings, the Minnesota Timberwolves and the Orlando Magic.
If anyone doubted his skills, that day in his hometown, just miles from where he grew up, he showed the sports world that he was a serious contender.
With teammates Tree Rollins and Kevin Willis perched under the basket and Dominique Wilkins awaiting his turn on the sideline, reports of the day said Webb incited 17,000 fans to near riot with a superlative series of floor- shaking, basket-rattling dunks to beat Wilkins by two points in the finals. On one early attempt, he delivered with such force it was believed to be a miss until judges determined the ball had actually gone through, glanced off Webb’s head and bounced back out.
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